Aston Villa: How David O’Leary brought a damp end to the Doug Ellis era
Aston Villa announced that Irish manager David O’Leary had been sacked exactly 16 years ago after a rough 2005/06 season.
The Irish manager had been in place since 2003, arriving at the club after a fine four-year spell in charge of Leeds United.
Despite guiding The Whites to a Champions League semi-final during his time at Elland Road, he struggled to replicate that success at Villa Park.
His spell in charge saw Villa facing relegation every season, only able to perform consistently for one half of a season.
That was until the 2005/06 season, where there was no turnaround and Villa stayed up by the skin of their teeth.
A tumultuous era
Villa had a difficult 2002/03 season, with legendary manager Graham Taylor returning for a second spell but only guiding the club to a 16th-place finish.
It was clear that a fresh pair of eyes was needed, so they drafted in O’Leary after his fine work at Leeds.
His first transfer window saw some smart, if unremarkable additions, with Gavin McCann and Thomas Sorensen both arriving from Sunderland before being joined by Nolberto Solano in January.
Villa started horribly, winning just two of their first ten games and sitting in the relegation zone in mid-December with a genuine prospect of going down.
However, Villa rallied in the second half of the season and inexplicably finished sixth, missing out on UEFA Cup qualification on goal difference.
His second season saw Villa pushing for Europe again before their form collapsed around Christmas and they plummeted down the table.
They recovered again but could only muster a 10th-place finish this time, leaving fans worried about the future.
The summer of 2005 saw a very mixed transfer window for Villa, with popular midfielder Thomas Hitzlsperger leaving but new hero Wilfried Bouma arriving.
Once again, they had a tough start, winning just two of their opening 12 matches and leaving the club looking over their shoulder.
They recovered again, losing just one of their next nine, but this one would not last and they would only win another four games all season.
Villa did stay up by eight points, with local rivals Birmingham City and West Brom going down in their place, but it was obviously not good enough and O’Leary was subsequently sacked.
He was given the boot and just weeks later, Doug Ellis would end his 38-year association with Villa by selling the club to Randy Lerner, bringing his era to an end.
O’Leary left a confusing legacy at Villa, with his reign bringing some dreary football and controversy, but also some smart transfers and a European push.
The most infamous moment of his reign saw him calling the Villa fans “fickle,” with the fans responding by unveiling a banner that read “we’re not fickle, we just don’t like you.”
However, he did bring in Villa hero Martin Laursen and forged the legendary duo of him and Olof Mellberg at the heart of the defence.
In truth, it was a sad end to the Doug Ellis era at Villa Park and the legendary chairman deserved a better send-off than that.In other Aston Villa news, PSG are now chasing Carney Chukwuemeka.